http://www.wordnik.com/lists/tunie-no-mans-land.xml By Eric Bogle. <br /> <br />Well, how'd you do, Private Willie McBride, <br />D'you mind if I sit down here by your <a href="/words/graveside">graveside</a>? <br />I'll rest for a while in the warm <a href="/words/summer">summer</a> <a href="/words/sun">sun</a>, <br />Been walking all day, Lord, and I'm nearly done. <br />I see by your <a href="/words/gravestone">gravestone</a> you were only <a href="/words/nineteen">nineteen</a> <br />When you joined the <a href="/words/glorious fallen">glorious fallen</a> in 1916. <br />I hope you <a href="/words/died">died</a> quick and I hope you died "clean," <br />Or, Willie McBride, was it slow and <a href="/words/obscene">obscene</a>? <br /> <br />CHORUS <br />Did they <a href="/words/beat the drum slowly">beat the drum slowly</a>, did they <a href="/words/sound the fife lowly">sound the fife lowly</a>? <br />Did the <a href="/words/rifles">rifles</a> fire o'er ye as they <a href="/words/lowered">lowered</a> ye down? <br />Did the <a href="/words/bugles">bugles</a> sing "The Last Post" in chorus? <br />Did the <a href="/words/pipes">pipes</a> play "The <a href="/words/Flowers">Flowers</a> of the <a href="/words/Forest">Forest</a>"? <br /> <br />And did you leave a <a href="/words/wife">wife</a> or a <a href="/words/sweetheart">sweetheart</a> behind— <br />In some <a href="/words/faithful">faithful</a> heart, is your <a href="/words/memory">memory</a> <a href="/words/enshrined">enshrined</a>? <br />And, though you died back in 1916, <br />To that <a href="/words/loyal">loyal</a> heart are you <a href="/words/forever">forever</a> nineteen? <br />Or are you a <a href="/words/stranger">stranger</a>, <a href="/words/without">without</a> even a name, <br />Forever enshrined behind some <a href="/words/glass">glass</a> pane, <br />In an old <a href="/words/photograph">photograph</a>, torn and <a href="/words/tattered">tattered</a> and stained, <br />And <a href="/words/fading">fading</a> to yellow in a brown <a href="/words/leather">leather</a> frame? <br /> <br />Well, the sun's shining down on these <a href="/words/green fields">green fields</a> of France; <br />The warm wind blows <a href="/words/gently">gently</a>, the red <a href="/words/poppies">poppies</a> dance. <br />The <a href="/words/trenches">trenches</a> have vanished long under the plow; <br />No <a href="/words/gas">gas</a> and no <a href="/words/barbed wire">barbed wire</a>, no <a href="/words/guns">guns</a> firing now. <br />But here in this graveyard it's still [No Man's Land]; <br />The <a href="/words/countless">countless</a> white <a href="/words/crosses">crosses</a> in <a href="/words/mute">mute</a> witness stand <br />To man's <a href="/words/blind">blind</a> indifference to his <a href="/words/fellow">fellow</a> man <br />And a whole <a href="/words/generation">generation</a> who were <a href="/words/butchered">butchered</a> and <a href="/words/damned">damned</a>. <br /> <br />And I can't help but <a href="/words/wonder">wonder</a> now, Willie McBride, <br />Do all those who lie here know <a href="/words/why">why</a> they died? <br />Did you really believe them when they told you "<a href="/words/the cause">the cause</a>"? <br />Did you really believe that this <a href="/words/war">war</a> would <a href="/words/end">end</a> wars? <br />Well, the <a href="/words/suffering">suffering</a>, the <a href="/words/sorrow">sorrow</a>, the <a href="/words/glory">glory</a>, the <a href="/words/shame">shame</a>, <br />The <a href="/words/killing">killing</a>, the <a href="/words/dying">dying</a>, it was all done in <a href="/words/vain">vain</a>, <br />For Willie McBride, it's all happened <a href="/words/again">again</a>, <br />And again, and again, and again, and again. http://www.wordnik.com http://www.wordnik.com/words/graveside Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:29:28 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/graveside http://www.wordnik.com/words/summer Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:29:25 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/summer http://www.wordnik.com/words/sun Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:29:24 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/sun http://www.wordnik.com/words/gravestone Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:29:18 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/gravestone http://www.wordnik.com/words/nineteen Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:29:16 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/nineteen http://www.wordnik.com/words/glorious fallen Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:29:11 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/glorious fallen http://www.wordnik.com/words/died Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:29:09 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/died http://www.wordnik.com/words/obscene Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:29:07 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/obscene http://www.wordnik.com/words/beat the drum slowly Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:59 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/beat the drum slowly http://www.wordnik.com/words/sound the fife lowly Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:54 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/sound the fife lowly http://www.wordnik.com/words/rifles Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:50 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/rifles http://www.wordnik.com/words/lowered Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:45 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/lowered http://www.wordnik.com/words/bugles Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:43 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/bugles http://www.wordnik.com/words/pipes Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:42 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/pipes http://www.wordnik.com/words/flowers Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:36 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/flowers http://www.wordnik.com/words/forest Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:35 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/forest http://www.wordnik.com/words/wife Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:33 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/wife http://www.wordnik.com/words/sweetheart Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:31 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/sweetheart http://www.wordnik.com/words/faithful Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:24 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/faithful http://www.wordnik.com/words/memory Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:22 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/memory http://www.wordnik.com/words/enshrined Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:20 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/enshrined http://www.wordnik.com/words/loyal Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:13 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/loyal http://www.wordnik.com/words/forever Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:11 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/forever http://www.wordnik.com/words/stranger Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:06 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/stranger http://www.wordnik.com/words/without Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:04 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/without http://www.wordnik.com/words/glass Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:28:02 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/glass http://www.wordnik.com/words/photograph Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:59 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/photograph http://www.wordnik.com/words/tattered Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:57 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/tattered http://www.wordnik.com/words/fading Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:54 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/fading http://www.wordnik.com/words/leather Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:52 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/leather http://www.wordnik.com/words/green fields Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:50 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/green fields http://www.wordnik.com/words/gently Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:45 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/gently http://www.wordnik.com/words/poppies Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:43 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/poppies http://www.wordnik.com/words/trenches Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:39 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/trenches http://www.wordnik.com/words/gas Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:37 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/gas http://www.wordnik.com/words/barbed wire Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:36 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/barbed wire http://www.wordnik.com/words/guns Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:33 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/guns http://www.wordnik.com/words/no man's land Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:29 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/no man's land http://www.wordnik.com/words/countless Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:26 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/countless http://www.wordnik.com/words/crosses Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:24 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/crosses http://www.wordnik.com/words/mute Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:22 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/mute http://www.wordnik.com/words/blind Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:21 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/blind http://www.wordnik.com/words/fellow Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:19 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/fellow http://www.wordnik.com/words/generation Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:18 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/generation http://www.wordnik.com/words/butchered Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:15 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/butchered http://www.wordnik.com/words/damned Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:13 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/damned http://www.wordnik.com/words/wonder Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:11 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/wonder http://www.wordnik.com/words/why Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:09 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/why http://www.wordnik.com/words/the cause Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:08 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/the cause http://www.wordnik.com/words/war Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:06 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/war http://www.wordnik.com/words/end Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:27:05 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/end http://www.wordnik.com/words/suffering Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:26:39 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/suffering http://www.wordnik.com/words/sorrow Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:26:37 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/sorrow http://www.wordnik.com/words/glory Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:26:35 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/glory http://www.wordnik.com/words/shame Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:26:33 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/shame http://www.wordnik.com/words/killing Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:26:32 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/killing http://www.wordnik.com/words/dying Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:26:30 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/dying http://www.wordnik.com/words/vain Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:26:28 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/vain http://www.wordnik.com/words/again Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:26:27 +0000 http://www.wordnik.com/words/again